The Affection Misconception
by moulesfrites
Summary: Set after S6E14 The Cooper/Kripke Inversion. Caught in a compromising situation with Sheldon, what's a girl to do but help her boyfriend out in his time of need? He might look bad in front of his greatest rival after all. Not on her watch. Shamy. Canon. Cover by rgbcn.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N S6E14 The Cooper/Kripke Inversion is one of my favourite BBT episodes. I've always wondered what who have happened if Amy herself got caught up in the web of lies Sheldon spun… **

**I'm planning on making this a multi-chapter story. Rated T for now.**

**The Affection Misconception**

Sheldon sat at his desk, an open folder in front of him, reading to himself. He took an occasional sip of tea from his 'World's Best Physicist' mug – it had been a gift from Amy. He didn't have the heart to tell her that the world's best physicist was Stephen Hawking, and instead had accepted it gracefully.

He was just coming to the conclusion of the scientific journal he was reading; the hypothesis would be refuted, he had already concluded, when a soft knock sounded at his door.

Kripke was early.

Oh, how Sheldon hated working with him. The last couple of weeks had been absolute torture. Kripke had stopped making lewd comments about Sheldon's alleged sex life with Amy a couple of days ago, and Sheldon was grateful. It was getting harder each day to come up with stories about sexual encounters that didn't take place.

He had even gone so far to look up possible sexual situations online and to pay attention to whatever explicit stories Wolowitz would tell him, just so he would be able to talk to Kripke about it.

Without looking up from his article, Sheldon addressed the unwanted guest in his office. "You're early, Kripke. Please return in approximately –" he paused and looked at his watch, "two minutes and 47 seconds."

"Sheldon, it's me," Amy said from the doorstep.

Sheldon looked up in alarm, his eyes wide. _No, _she couldn't be here now. Not with Kripke coming to his office any minute now.

Amy entered his office and smiled up at him. "I just wanted to see how you were doing, working with Kripke and all," she continued happily, taking her bag from her shoulder and dropping it in the chair in front of his desk. She smiled at him innocently. "You never got around to telling me what he thought of your research."

_There was a good reason for that,_ Sheldon thought.

He was panicking already. There was no way he would be able to get Amy out of his office within the limited timeframe. And also, the odds of her running into Kripke in the hallway were enormous.

"You really shouldn't be here right now," he said, thoughtlessly. A hurt look crossed over her face. "What?" she asked, her voice small.

_Didn't she know her being here would cause a really uncomfortable situation for him? For the both of them? _

His brain – his brilliant, brilliant brain – went into overdrive. _He could fix this. _He just had to act quickly, that's all.

"Amy," Sheldon said urgently. "Come over here please."

She looked at him, confused, but walked over to his desk nonetheless. "Sheldon, what's wrong?" she asked.

"No, I meant over _here,"_ he emphasised, and pushed his desk chair away from his desk. "Behind the desk, quickly."

Amy furrowed her brow at him.

"Amy, please," he muttered urgently. Time was running out fast.

She still regarded him with a confused expression on her face, but walked over behind his desk nonetheless.

Sheldon grasped her wrist when she was within reach, and pulled her swiftly into his lap. Amy gasped in surprise and landed rather hard on his thighs. "Sheldon!" she exclaimed, "what are y—"

Sheldon cupped her face with his free hand, silencing her with his urgent look. "When Kripke gets here," he spoke fast and quietly – the insufferable man would be here any second now – "it has to look like we're in the midst of canoodling in here."

He felt her pulse spike beneath the fingers still on her wrist. "What?" she whispered, the volume of her voice matching his. She was so _close_. Had she ever been this close? Their bathing suits areas were sort of pressing together. Sheldon didn't know what to think of it.

"Canoodling," he repeated, assuming she had misheard him perhaps. He then elaborated, "Making out, fooling around, whatever the kids call it these days." Really, he had no time for Amy's sudden less than stellar vocabulary.

She still stared at him. Amy opened her mouth to speak, but no sound came out. Had they ever been this close before? Sure, she had hugged him a couple for weeks ago, but this was different. This felt incredibly _intimate_.

Sheldon's ears pick up on the sound of footsteps in the hall way.

"Amy, please, I beg of you," he beseeched her, "I'll explain everything later." He moved his face closer to her. He repositioned his hand on her wrist to her thigh, grasping it firmly.

He pressed a kiss to her cheek. "_Please_," he murmured.

Amy exhaled, shaking. "OK," she breathed. _Thank the Lord. _Sheldon had half a mind to kiss her on the lips. He took a deep breath to ward away that disturbing thought.

The footsteps were approaching his office rapidly. His stomach contracted with nervousness. If he failed to fool Kripke now, he would never hear the end of it. He would have to come clean about Kripke's superior work. _That wouldn't do. _

Sheldon moved his face downwards, breathing out harshly against Amy's neck, trying to calm himself down. Amy's hair fell in a curtain around them. She gripped the arm with which he held her leg tightly. Her other hand grabbing a fistful of his shirt. She was panting slightly.

Sheldon couldn't help but be impressed with her acting skills: she was already pretending to be in a heightened state of arousal. She really was doing a remarkable job.

Amy shifted in his lap, and it caused his lips to brush against the soft skin of her neck, underneath her ear. "Hoo!" she exclaimed. Sheldon froze for a second, _he remembered what that sound meant. _

Amy's warm posterior was planted even more firmly against his privates. Sheldon hoped the stimulation wouldn't cause an unwanted reaction. He prayed for his body not to betray him.

He squeezed her thigh in response. _Was this sound she made acting too or was this a genuine response to his mouth on her neck? _His curiosity piqued, he decided to test his hypothesis. He moved his lips purposely over her skin, grazing her softly. Amy gasped softly. Something twisted in his stomach as he registered the sound.

According to the scientific principle, he had have positive results two out of three times. Intending to kiss her neck again, Sheldon breathed in deeply to prepare himself.

Then several things happened at once.

Amy whimpered. Sheldon groaned. And a half knock sounded at the door.

"Woah!" Barry Kripke shouted gleefully. "You know your door is… wide open, right?"

Sheldon and Amy did their best 'deer-caught-in-headlights' act. Or maybe not so much an act, since the things they had been doing could easily be considered 'canoodling', Sheldon thought.

Amy had ducked her head down, pressing her face into Sheldon's neck. He could practically feel the heat of her blush coming of her. Sheldon, meanwhile, was holding her close to him, while he tried to give Barry a look of annoyance.

He cleared his throat. "Good morning, Kripke," he stated, his tone neutral. As if it was every day that he and Amy were caught in a compromising situation in his office.

"You know, Cooper," Kripke spoke as if they were two jocks discussing their latest conquests in the locker room, "I'd had thought that with all the action you're getting at night, there'd be no need for some good-ol' morning office action."

Sheldon felt Amy stiffen in his lap.

"I guess we lost track of time," Sheldon said in lieu of explaining their situation.

Kripke was grinning. "Track of time, sure," he chuckled, looking absolutely delighted. He walked over to the desk. "Amy, I presume?"

Amy looked up from Sheldon's neck, still blushing. She nodded. She was trembling slightly. Sheldon cursed himself inwardly for putting her in this position. She was obviously very uncomfortable. Sheldon moved his thumb in soft strokes on her leg, hoping it would calm her down.

"I don't believe you've met before," he continued, "Amy," he squeezed her leg again softly, "this is Barry Kripke." He spoke his name with as much contempt as possible. "Kripke; my girlfriend, Dr. Fowler." This had to be the strangest introduction he had ever done.

Amy released his shirt and extended her hand out to Kripke. "Nice to meet you," she said. Sheldon admired her poise. She still sat in his lap, but extended her hand out to him as if she was Barry's superior. Sheldon felt a rush of pride for her go through him.

Kripke smirked at her as he shook her hand, and his eyes moved over her body quickly. Sheldon noticed. Anger boiled up inside him.

"It's certainly nice to meet you too, Dr. Fowler," Kripke said with his slimy voice, "I've heard so, so many, _interesting _and lovely details about you." He raised his eyebrows rapidly as he spoke.

Sheldon cut his eyes to his. _How dare he._ Before Amy could question his comments any further, he decided to put an end to this. "We should get to work," he said pointedly, giving Kripke a look that told him to stop.

He quickly grabbed Amy's hips with both his hands, and half-lifted her off his lap. The loss of her warmth was disconcerting. Amy was wobbly on her legs, and he decided it would be easier if he stood up as well to help her regain balance.

Amy looked up at him, she was still holding onto him. He couldn't tell what she was thinking. Her cheeks still had a lovely blush on them. What an amazing actress, he marvelled, blushing on command like that.

He gave her a small smile, willing her to see how grateful he was. She had played along really well. He would have to find a way to tell her that later.

"I'll see you tonight?" he asked, his eyes imploring her. Somehow, his hand had moved on its own accord and had cupped her cheek again. _Curious._

"Yes," she answered, her voice a little breathless.

It took Sheldon half a second to realise that Kripke would expect them to kiss goodbye.

While not completely new to that territory, Sheldon still hated for the first time he kissed Amy to be because of his rivalry with Barry Kripke. Amy had kissed him multiple times now (well, twice), and both had been over rather quickly. Their entire exchange just now seemed to be a much bigger deal than those two quick pecks she had given him.

He could not get away with _not_ kissing her now. Or was there a loophole of sorts?

Mustering all his courage, he twisted Amy slightly so the back of her head would obscure Kripke's vision of them. Then he bent forward and kissed her cheek, right next to her lips. The corners of their mouths touched a little. She kissed him back swiftly. Her puckered lips grazed half of his own lips. Sheldon had to suppress a yelp at the contact.

He pulled away quickly. Amy's flush had deepened. Maybe she wasn't acting after all. Sheldon tried to catch her gaze, trying determine again what she was thinking. Amy diverted her gaze and walked around the desk, grabbing her bag from the chair.

"I'll let you get to work," she said, smiling. "It was nice to meet you, Barry."

Kripke nodded at her, his grin still in place. "And you, Amy."

Sheldon watched her leave. What had just happened between them? He needed time to analyse it. And now, he didn't have time at all, because he had an entire day of working with Barry ahead of him. A day probably filled with the same kind of questions and vulgar talk that had just stopped.

"Whew!" Kripke howled as Amy disappeared from their view, "I can see why you can't keep your hands off her, Cooper. I'd tap that ass every chance I got as well!"

Sheldon closed his eyes and breathed in deeply. _There was no way Amy hadn't heard that. _How on earth was he ever going to explain this to her?

"She seems feisty as well!" Kripke continued, not noticing or choosing to ignore Sheldon's discomfort. "That look she gave me when I shook her hand…" Kripke made a sound which was half-way between a moan and a grunt, "I'm not gonna lie, it did something to me, if you know what I mean."

"That's enough," Sheldon spat, furious at the comments he made about Amy. _She was not his to lust after. _"I don't need you to tell me what she's like, Kripke. I get to experience that on a nightly bases. And I don't care for the way you looked at her either." Raising his eyebrows for good measure.

Kripke had the decency to look somewhat embarrassed. He cleared his throat awkwardly. "So, work then?"

They gathered around a whiteboard, and markers squeaked over the board.

Outside, Amy stood with her back pressed against the wall. Her lips still tingling, her heartrate still increased and now her ears ringing as well. _What the hell had just happened? _

_To be continued_


	2. Chapter 2

**Part II**

The rest of the day passed in a blur.

Sheldon had spent the entire day listening to Kripke saying he 'could not keep it in his pants' and other crude comments, mostly in appreciation of Amy's body. Sheldon had hated every second of it. Kripke had only recently stopped talking asking about Sheldon's (non-existent) sex life, but after meeting Amy in person, resumed just as easily.

While defecting Kripke's questions with some trouble, Sheldon was more concerned with his own thoughts and questions about the matter.

Amy had been easily persuaded to play along with his scheme. She had performed admirably. _Except that kiss._ He had not expected her to kiss him back. Foolish of him, really. Amy was always begging him for physical attention. Penny had said so as well.

Then why was he surprised by her assertiveness? Obviously, she had enjoyed him touching her.

Or was he not as much surprised by her actions, but more surprised by his own reactions?

The entire ride home with Leonard had consisted of him mulling everything over in his mind. The way Amy's heartrate had elevated, the '_Hoo'_ sound she made when his lips touched her neck, how she was easily coaxed into playing along with him after he had kissed her cheek…

His mouth went dry when he thought back to the way her lips felt, half-pressed against his own. It had been years since she last kissed him. He had forgotten what it felt like. _No¸ _he chided himself, _Sheldon didn't forget anything. He had chosen not to think about it, because it confused him._

His own heartbeat had been elevated as well. His thoughts drifted back to how it had felt when Amy sat in his lap. The heat coming off her almost had him worried for her; was she walking around with a fever at work? She had been so incredibly close to him. Pressed against him, her scent enveloping him, the soft skin of her neck under his lips…

Sheldon put a halt to his thoughts. He got confused again. This strange feeling of his stomach constricting in itself – kind of like hunger, but different – and a tingling feeling in his underbelly, had his mind in disarray. He didn't like it when his mind was not in control.

Around the time Amy was scheduled to arrive for Thai food, he was nervous again. He had tried to think of a way to explain the web of lies he had created – it was for science! – but there was no way he could explain it to Amy without sounding either perverted, childish or crazy.

And then, the most amazing thing happened.

Amy had arrived at dinner, smiled at him, took her usual seat next to him on the couch and had acted as if nothing out of the ordinary had passed between them.

Sheldon had expected Amy to confront him that same night at diner, but she was surprisingly silent on the matter.

It unnerved him even more.

* * *

The expected confrontation never came. Not the following day, or the day after that. Not even during their date night that Thursday when they were without their gang of friends.

It was like it hadn't happened at all.

The only confirmation that Sheldon hadn't imagined it, were the comments made by Kripke every day that Sheldon worked with him.

Sheldon had trouble falling asleep.

Why would Amy not confront him about the scene in his office? He had promised her he would explain. He just hadn't been forthcoming. But, that normally never stopped Amy from confronting him.

There could be multiple reasons for her not to confront him:

1\. _Amy tried to give him the chance to come clean himself_

_2\. Amy had been disgusted by his blatant lies and decided to re-boot their relationship_

_3\. Amy understood that his rivalry with Kripke was so serious that all was fair _

_4\. Amy had liked the way he had acted and was afraid confronting him would push him away_

_5\. All of the above_

Sheldon had multiple hypotheses to test. And tomorrow would be as good a day as any to test them.

* * *

It was five in the afternoon, and he and Barry were still in the midst of some equations that even their combined brainpower had difficulty solving. They both stood at their respected whiteboards, drawing and erasing in the utmost concentration.

His mind was so completely focused, that Sheldon forgot that he had asked Amy to meet him at his office at five o'clock to pick him up for dinner.

That morning Sheldon had arranged everything perfectly. He wondered if Amy would be able to see through his deceit. However, that was hours ago. All thoughts of Amy – and anything else for that matter – were gone while he was in the zone.

The knock on the door startled both physicists. Markers squeaked on the board as they both jumped up in surprise.

Sheldon turned towards the door. _Amy. _ He had been so completely engrossed by his work, that he hadn't thought of his plan at all the last couple of hours. He berated himself. How could he have been so careless?

"Hello," she said happily, smiling brightly at him.

Her eyes shifted over to Kripke quickly, and just as fast back to Sheldon's face. Someone who didn't know the situation wouldn't have noticed it. But Sheldon did. He gave her a barely imperceptible nod.

_This is it. The outcome of every hypothesis depended on her following actions. _

She walked up to him and, like it was the most normal thing in the world, pulled his face towards hers and pressed her lips against his.

As if it was nothing.

As if his stomach didn't immediately constrict, as if his heartrate didn't quicken, as if he didn't break out in cold sweat at the feeling of her mouth against his.

Sheldon kissed her back without even realising he was doing so. His lips moved against hers hesitantly, and he heard Amy inhale sharply through her nose.

She pulled back when Kripke cleared his throat behind them. Sheldon sighed. He had wanted more time to test his hypotheses. And he had broken his own rule of not kissing her for the first time in front of Kripke.

"Hello," Sheldon greeted her softly, looking into her eyes. Her pupils were dilated.

"Hi," she smiled, and then added as an afterthought, "Good afternoon, Barry."

Kripke nodded awkwardly at her, and averted his eyes. Sheldon was glad he wasn't checking her out again. Kripke turned back to his whiteboard, erasing some numbers and letters.

"Kripke and I were still in the middle of work," Sheldon said to her, "I should have called you, I'm sorry." Sheldon never apologized, especially not where work was concerned. He was getting sentimental already.

"It's alright," Amy replied, "I could come back in an hour, if you want?"

Sheldon debated it. There was no way he would be able to concentrate now. Not after that kiss.

"Kripke," Sheldon turned to him. "Would you mind terribly continuing this tomorrow?"

"You're no good with your girlfriend around, Cooper," Kripke smirked at him. He put down his marker, and turned to Amy. "You're making him lose his focus, doctor Fowler."

And with that he left.

Leaving Sheldon and Amy standing in his office, avoiding each other's gazes.

"So," Sheldon cleared his throat, "dinner then?"

* * *

They didn't speak of it during dinner. Not the kiss, not the comments made by Kripke. Nothing.

Sheldon was grateful, he needed time to think it through. The first data he had gathered now to test the hypotheses had been positive on some points.

It would appear that Amy knew just how far his rivalry with Kripke went, and that it was essential to act like they were in a physical relationship in front of him. He appreciated her mind even more; he hadn't specifically told her this, but she had drawn her own conclusions.

She was saving his face every time she visited him in his office.

The way her eyes had dilated when he kissed her, seemed to indicate that she had enjoyed him kissing her.

He was almost certain that he didn't need any additional data to confirm the first hypothesis. Seeing as Amy had played along with his scheme – without her even fully knowing what it was and why he was scheming – and hadn't asked about it at all… That could only mean one thing.

1\. _Amy tried to give him a chance to come clean himself._ **Confirmed. **

But the longer Sheldon waited and let the situation continue, the more difficult coming clean became.

* * *

More than a week passed, and Amy still hadn't confronted him. It bothered him. What bothered him even more, was the fact that they hadn't kissed since. He was fairly sure she had liked it when he kissed her. Why would she not kiss him again? Was she waiting for _him_ to kiss _her_?

Sheldon meanwhile found himself hoping that Amy would visit him in his office, whenever Kripke was around, so he would have an excuse to kiss her. She hadn't come over since.

He was strangely disappointed.

Sheldon was working on his whiteboard when Amy walked into his office. She was carrying a paper bag with lunch. "Hello," he greeted.

Amy gave him a smile, and put the bag on the corner of his desk. While taking off her bag and coat, she asked him, "What are you working on?"

Sheldon turned around and could hardly contain his excitement. "A new approach to M-theory," he was smiling brightly, "I never thought I'd say this, but working with Kripke has challenged me in such a way that I've been able to focus better and make more progress."

"I'm glad to hear it, Sheldon," Amy gave him a genuine smile. "Working with him is getting better then?"

Sheldon halted. Was she alluding to something? Was she trying to get him to come clean about it all?

He opened his mouth to respond when he heard a lisping voice from outside his office. Barry Kripke was there, just outside, answering a phone call.

"Hello? This is Dr. Kripke, yes."

Amy hadn't closed the door fully.

His eyes cut to hers. She was gaping slightly, obviously having heard him as well. Sheldon didn't know what to do. Should he kiss her again? It did seem like the perfect opportunity. He couldn't get his body to move however.

Amy took a deep breath and pushed herself up onto his desk, sitting down on the edge of it. Her legs dangled inches above the ground.

Sheldon stared at her.

Amy widened her eyes at him, as if she was saying '_what are you waiting for?'_.

They shared a look of understanding.

Sheldon walked over to her, listening to Kripke's continuing conversation at the other side of the door.

He held Amy's gaze as he closed in on her. She was breathing faster than usual, he noticed her chest rising and falling in an increased rhythm. She looked nervous. Her lips were slightly parted. Her green eyes blinked up at him behind her red-rimmed frames. Sheldon tried to read her; what did she want him to do now?

No, scratch that. What did _he _want to do?

He exhaled shakily, and cupped her face. He bent down and brushed his mouth across hers. Amy shivered. Something akin to an electric current went through him. Their lips met. Amy grasped his waist and pulled him closer to her, opening her legs a bit to accommodate him.

Sheldon almost pulled back in shock. They were so close. Again.

Her knees hugged his sides. Sheldon moved his lips over hers, caressing them hesitantly. He marvelled at the feel of her. So soft. Wet. The constrictions in his stomach were incessant as they seemed to move in perfect unison.

Amy moved her hands from his waist to his neck, pulling him even closer to her. Sheldon exhaled harshly through his nose, and gasped in turn. Amy seemed to take this as an invitation to take his up a notch.

Her tongue brushed his lips, soft but firm. Sheldon pulled back from her, his hands leaving her face, his mouth agape. Amy was panting, her pupils dilated, her hands still grasping his neck.

He could still hear Kripke talk on the phone in the hallway.

Sheldon breathed out a shuddering breath. They couldn't stop now. What if Kripke came in and saw them _not _making out? Surely he would assume something. What he would assume, Sheldon couldn't tell. But it would cause damage to his reputation. Right?

_Yes, _Sheldon thought. _He should continue this charade. _Although, it was feeling less like a charade with every passing minute.

Amy was looking at him with wide eyes. Her hands loosened their grip on his neck, probably embarrassed to have gone too far. Sheldon decided he had to move quickly.

He repositioned his hands to her thighs, pushed up her skirt a little and moved in closer to her than he had been before. Amy gasped and he covered her mouth quickly with his. Their lips moved over each other urgently. Meeting, moving, pushing, pulling.

Their mouths opened on their accord, their tongues brushing against each other timidly.

Amy moaned into his mouth softly. Sheldon squeezed her legs in response, pushing against her. The warmth coming from her bottom when she had sat on his lap, was nothing compared to the heat he felt coming from between her legs.

It did something to him. Something primal stirred inside him. He kissed her fully now, and Amy seemed more than happy to try to keep up with him.

"Woah, woah, woah!" Kripke exclaimed from the doorway. "Is this going to happen every time we meet, Cooper? Cause frankly… it's turning me on little."

Sheldon pulled back from Amy, breathing deeply.

He couldn't read the look on her face. Well, except from the fact that the dilated pupils indicated arousal.

Sheldon cleared his throat, and moved away from Amy awkwardly. "I didn't know we had an appointment, Kripke," he muttered.

Kripke was grinning at the both of them. "We didn't, but we were on the verge of a breakthrough, so I figured I'd come by," he smirked. "But I see you've become distracted again."

Sheldon was distracted alright. They had kissed again. And how. It had escalated rapidly.

He looked at Amy, her face was flushed. She gave him a timid smile. He helped her off of the desk, and Amy pulled her skirt into place.

"It's probably best if I stop coming by at work, then," she said softly. She avoided both their gazes.

Sheldon's stomach sank.

Without this fooling of Barry Kripke as an excuse to kiss her, how would he ever test his other hypotheses?

_To be continued_

**A/N Reviews are my drug. **


	3. Chapter 3

**Part III**

"Oh, there's no need to stop coming by on my account, Doctor Fowler," Kripke lisped.

"As a matter of fact, I should be thanking you. Can you imagine what kind pain in the ass Cooper would be if you stopped putting out?" he continued, half laughing. "I can barely tolerate him now, imagine this guy filled with sexual frustration!"

Kripke guffawed and slapped Sheldon's shoulder for good measure. He winced.

Amy laughed awkwardly. "Ha ha, imagine that," she said softly. Sheldon quickly avoided her gaze.

_What an uncomfortable situation. _

Sheldon cleared his throat.

"Well, I'll leave you to it to work on this 'break through' then," Amy said, trying to catch Sheldon's eye.

"But you'll have to make it up to me tomorrow, mister," she continued in a sort of suggestive voice, smiling wickedly at him.

Sheldon blinked quickly. What did she mean? Was she upset about missing lunch? Was she playing along with his scheme for Kripke's benefit? He didn't know what was real anymore.

He figured the odds she really wanted him to make up a missing lunch were slim to none.

She must be helping him save face. _Again_.

Sheldon walked over to her and grasped her hand. He swung their joint hands around slightly.

"What if… I let you pick the movie tomorrow?" he tried to sound flirty. He was pretty sure he failed.

He heard Kripke chuckle somewhere behind him.

He looked at Amy imploringly. She _had_ _to_ understand what was going on. Otherwise the next thing he said would mess everything up.

He moved downwards to whisper in her ear.

"And when we get home, I promise to do that thing you like," he whispered loud enough for Kripke to hear.

Amy inhaled shakily, her eyes wide as she looked at him. "Sheldon!" she said, sounding scandalized.

"You'd rather I do the other thing?" he was talking nonsense now, but Amy was beet red.

"We're at work," she whispered quietly, though her eyes sparkled and there was a smile on the corners of her mouth.

Sheldon raised an eyebrow at her, and lifted her chin with his unoccupied hand. This was another opportunity to kiss her again, and he wasn't going to let that pass.

"I promise, I'll give it to you _really _well," he murmured. Amy's eyes widened in shock.

He pressed his mouth to hers quickly before she could say anything, and she kissed him back after a split-second. Sheldon moved his lips over hers in the way he had done before, when she sat down on his desk. Amy trembled.

Sheldon needed no further data to confirm another of his hypotheses.

_4\. Amy had _liked_ the way he had acted and was afraid confronting him would push him away._ **Confirmed**_. _

There was no doubt in his mind anymore that she liked it. He felt her increased heartrate beating steadily under his fingertips on her wrist. And she had made no move to confront him up to now.

He pulled away reluctantly.

Amy smiled timidly. "Get back to work," she said. She kissed him once more, and turned to grab her stuff on his desk.

"Bye," Amy said. Kripke nodded at her. Sheldon turned to watch her go.

He was met with Leonard's startled look in the doorway. _When had he gotten here? _

"Hey Leonard," Amy greeted him as she walked out of the door.

"Amy," he mumbled, regarding her with furrowed brows. Sheldon wished he could act just a little bit less oblivious. He had informed him about his deceitful plan to fool Kripke. Had Leonard already forgotten?

Sheldon gave him a look, he inclined his head slightly in Kripke's direction.

Leonard seemed to understand it at last, his eyebrows lifted in comprehension. How that man had gotten his doctorate sometimes baffled Sheldon.

"Leonard," Sheldon said when it didn't seem like he would start the conversation himself, "what can I help you with?"

"Uh," Leonard seemed flummoxed, "I wanted to see if you were going to come to lunch with us."

"I just cancelled on lunch with Amy for my project with Kripke," Sheldon said regretfully, "so you can just bring me the daily special here."

Sheldon didn't understand why Leonard was annoyed with him when he brought him a tray with food.

* * *

The following afternoon, Sheldon had trouble focussing on his work. He didn't know what was real anymore, and what was pretend. Was he supposed to take Amy to the cinema tonight and let her pick out the movie? Or were they just going to go to dinner, as established in the relationship agreement?

He swallowed nervously.

_Was he expected to take her home and do… something now? _

Leonard appeared to be of no help whatsoever.

"So, Sheldon," he had started as they drove away from the parking lot, "did you have a _fun_ with Amy this morning?"

Sheldon rolled his eyes. If Leonard would just say what he meant to say, it would save the both of them a lot of time.

"It was fine. We were interrupted by Kripke pretty quickly," Sheldon murmured. He was still annoyed by Kripke's untimely appearance. The more he thought about it, the more Sheldon wished he had had more time to gather data on what had happened.

His body had taken over from his mind when he had kissed her.

Never before had his mind not been in control over his body. Except maybe the times where he had gotten drunk. It was strange; having his body acting on its own accord.

He recalled everything. The softness of Amy's lips against his. The wet, slippery feeling of her tongue licking the inside of his mouth, brushing against his own tongue. The shuddering exhales from Amy's nose against his cheek. The tiny sounds she made when he had closed in on her; his hands on her warm thighs. The scorching heat radiating towards him from between her legs.

Sheldon sighed deeply. He was getting confused again.

Leonard could only grin smugly at the predicament Sheldon was in. His tone had been a little too suggestive for Sheldon's taste.

"You mean that if Kripke hadn't been there, something else might have happened as well?" Leonard grinned, and before Sheldon had a chance to respond, added, "you dog!"

Sheldon frowned, uncomprehending of what his roommate was saying. "What else could have possibly happened, Leonard?" he was getting tired of Leonards unclear comments really quickly.

Leonard shook his head, still grinning. "I don't know what _frequent, intense and whimsically inventive _things you and Amy are up to nowadays…"

Sheldon felt the blood rush to his face as he understood Leonard's meaning. "Amy and I are not having coitus, Leonard. Especially not at work," he snapped.

"Who said anything about coitus?" Leonard asked, and Sheldon wondered if he was being sarcastic.

Sheldon sighed. "At least Kripke still doesn't suspect anything," he mumbled.

"Yeah," Leonard said, and he looked at Sheldon quizzically for a second. "I bet it didn't take a lot of convincing Amy to play along, did it?"

Sheldon was silent. Were they still playing though?

* * *

Sheldon thought long and hard how to play this; the testing of his hypotheses. He still had two others to test, or at least draw conclusions about.

_2\. Amy had been disgusted by his blatant lies and decided to re-boot their relationship_

_3\. Amy understood that his rivalry with Kripke was so serious that all was fair_

She didn't _appear _disgusted by his lies. And there appeared to be no rebooting of any kind. The opposite actually.

As for the other hypothesis; Amy understood perfectly that they acted differently around Kripke. But it baffled Sheldon that she hadn't asked him _why _they were acting differently around him.

Maybe it was time to add a new hypothesis to the list.

_6\. Amy would only kiss him if Kripke were present. _

Sheldon sincerely hoped he would be able to refute this particular hypothesis. Perhaps even that same evening.

* * *

It turned out Amy used his lies as the ultimate opportunity to get him to see a French movie with her. While Sheldon enjoyed foreign cinema – he had even had to teach Koothrappali a thing or two about Indian cinema back in the day – he disliked the French language. Something about the melodiousness and the softness made it seem too… _romantic_, and Amy was always in an extremely giddy mood after listening to the language for a long period of time.

But he had made her a promise of sorts the day before, which he should stay true to, Sheldon figured.

That's how he ended up in a theatre, with Amy next to him, watching the girl from The Da Vinci Code skip around Paris, trying to change people's lives for the better. It was enjoyable, sure, but he didn't nearly like it as much as Amy did. The plot was highly improbable, but that didn't stop Amy from gushing for the duration of the entire movie. At least the music was nice.

"Oooh, look! It's the garden gnome again!" Amy whispered, the delight apparent in her voice.

"Hmhm," Sheldon replied.

He wasn't even really watching the movie anymore. The music had lulled him into a kind of trance, and Amy's joyous laughter had his eyes fixated on her. It didn't help that they had been holding hands the entire movie. His mind kept replaying their intense kisses from the day before.

Why did Amy seem unaffected by his presence now? He was having a really hard time trying to keep focussed on the movie with her next to him like this.

A horrible thought suddenly entered Sheldon's mind. _Had he been bad at kissing? _It would be the second thing in his life that he wasn't good at – the first being driving a car. He had to admit… the odds were not really in his favour. He already _excelled _at so many things in life. There were bound to be things he _didn't _excel in.

It was really too bad the thing he was bad at, turned out to be kissing, instead of for instance using ethnic humour to break the ice with Amy's foreign colleagues.

But maybe he shouldn't draw conclusions this quickly.

After all; they had only kissed twice now – he was going to count yesterday as once, for the sake of argument – and really, a good scientist always tested things three times.

And he also had a new hypothesis to test tonight.

_6\. Amy would only kiss him if Kripke were present. _

He glanced at the big screen in front of him. There seemed to be nothing of importance going on; the main character had just gotten on a carnival ride – a haunted house. There was a person dressed as a skeleton on the cart with her.

He figured now was as good a time as any.

Sheldon pulled on their joined hands, moving them to the outside of his lap, so he basically pulled Amy against him. She turned to him in wonder, she appeared to be taken off guard.

Sheldon could barely make out the surprised look in her eyes in the dark of the theatre. Before he lost his nerve, he cradled her face with his other hand and brought his lips to hers.

Amy gasped in surprise just before his lips connected to hers. Her mouth was opened slightly still, and Sheldon took advantage of the situation. His tongue brushed the inside of her upper lip, moving her lips further apart to accommodate him. He faintly heard her make a sound that was halfway between a moan and a whimper. She brushed her tongue against the underside of his, and Sheldon groaned softly in response.

He moved his hand from her jaw to her hair, his fingers massaging her scalp, all the while pulling her closer to him. Their tongues moved against each other again, but with much less urgency than the day before. It was almost as if they were exploring each other now.

Sheldon marvelled at the softness of Amy's lips against his, and the sensuous feeling her tongue caused. _Why didn't they do this more often? _

She whimpered again and squeezed his hand. Their joined hands had somehow moved to his lap. That was dangerous territory. Sheldon was about to move their hands from being too near to his bathing suit area, when their kisses were rudely interrupted by someone throwing popcorn at the back of his head.

_That'd better not be buttered_, Sheldon thought angrily, and he pulled away from Amy. They were both breathing rather heavily.

Amy smiled at him shyly, her eyes sparkled. Sheldon tried to read her expression. Amy appeared to tremble under his gaze.

She bit her lip, and ducked her head. It looked entirely too adorable.

Amy turned to watch the remainder of the movie. Sheldon shifted in his seat, and had half a mind to turn around and shoot an annoyed look to whoever interrupted their moment just now.

But maybe it was for the best. Their hands had been way too close for comfort. Besides, he really needed no more proof for the last hypothesis.

_6\. Amy would only kiss him if Kripke were present. _

It was safe to say that particular hypothesis had been proven wrong easily.

The timid smiles she threw his way indicated that he wasn't as bad at this as he ultimately feared. Those fears were quickly replaced with another thought that troubled him even more than the insecurities he had about the hypothesis.

_… Now what? _

_To be continued_

**A/N My creative M-rated juices have dried out after writing three naughty stories last weekend (if interested; check them out). So I was able to continue this fun one. **

**Please, share your thoughts with me. **


	4. Chapter 4

**Part IV**

Amy put the car in park as the pulled in a parking spot on Los Robles Avenue. Sheldon looked to his left. Their date had officially come to an end.

For the remainder of the movie, their hands had remained clasped together on the armrest between them. Sheldon had tried to focus on the movie, mainly because Amy liked to talk about them after they ended, but he had found it hard to.

He had kissed her. Quite thoroughly, he might add. Without the need to; Kripke wasn't there in the theatre, so there was absolutely no reason for him to have done it. Other than the obvious one; _he had wanted to. _

Of course there were the hypotheses that he needed to test. But if he was honest with himself, he might as well add a new one to the list:

_7\. He would be willing to do anything to come up with a reason to kiss Amy, besides admitting the glaringly obvious desire to. _

He spoke in his most indifferent voice next, trying to sound aloof, before he knew what he was really asking her.

"Would you like to come in for a nightcap?"

Amy's eyes widened. Her hands trembled on the steering wheel. She must have realised the implications. She had asked him the same thing once, right before she had kissed him that very first time on her couch.

"Do you have Yoo Hoo?" she asked, obviously referring to the way she had lured him in that time. Her voice wavered a little.

Sheldon blinked. He didn't have any Yoo Hoo.

"No," he said, feeling defeated. "But I could make you a cup of tea."

Amy bit her lip in that adorable way she had done in the cinema. It almost looked as if she was trying to hide her smile.

"Alright."

She unbuckled her seatbelt, and got out of the car. Sheldon couldn't get out yet. He exhaled slowly. He felt incredibly nervous all of a sudden. It was preposterous. He and Amy spend a lot of time together. They saw each other almost every day, and on the days they didn't see each other in real life, they would see each other over Skype.

She had been in his apartment countless times. She had a designated spot on the couch right next to his. It shouldn't have been that big of deal that they would share a beverage together after date night.

And yet, inviting her up now felt different, almost monumental.

He unbuckled his seat belt and got out of the car. Amy shot him a nervous smile. He opened the door for her, and she ducked her head in appreciation. They walked up the flights of stairs side by side in silence. The air around them was filled with a sudden tension.

Sheldon felt anxious.

Why had he asked her to come in for a drink? What were his intentions, exactly?

He only realised that he hadn't wanted the date to be over yet. Their Relationship Agreement didn't specify how long the date should last. Usually they would go out to dinner. The movies were something they usually did with the others as well. They hardly ever went just the two of them.

But they usually didn't kiss during the movies either.

They didn't kiss at all.

Stupid Kripke.

If it weren't for Kripke and his assumptions and his better work, he wouldn't be in this predicament at all. And what a predicament. He didn't want this, this nervousness around Amy – a person he normally felt really comfortable around. He also didn't want this coiling in his gut, and this inexplicable desire to feel her lips against his again. He didn't want to think of more hypotheses to test – whether or not Amy wanted this advancement in their relationship, or whether she wondered why he was kissing her all of a sudden.

He hadn't asked for any of this.

Or maybe he had.

He could have told Kripke the truth. However bad it would have made him look. How was he supposed to know that Amy would come around his office to mess things up?

They had reached the fourth floor landing now. It was just as well. Because Sheldon realised that ever since Amy started her work at Caltech, she would come by his office at least twice a week.

_Had he subconsciously tried to create a situation in which he would have to be closer to her? _

It seemed highly probable.

He opened the door of her, feeling relieved that it was locked. Leonard would be at Penny's. Penny had reacted thrilled when he had come to the realisation that he wasn't ruling out ever becoming physical with Amy. It was all advancing much faster than he had thought. If Penny were here now – and saw them come in this late after a date, he wouldn't hear the end of it.

"What kind of tea would you like?" Sheldon asked, moving towards the kitchen to boil water.

Amy had taken her designated seat on the couch. Her coat and her bag were on his desk chair.

"Surprise me," she said softly.

Sheldon halted. He looked up at her. She was smiling at him. Nervously, but smiling nonetheless.

_She wasn't referring to the tea. _

Sheldon swallowed nervously. "Alright," he murmured, grabbing a random tea bag – Lemon Zinger – and dunking it in her yellow mug. His hands shook when he opened his own bag of tea – chamomile, for obvious reasons.

He walked over to the couch with both their mugs. He avoided her eyes. She was looking at him expectantly.

_Was this what it was going to be like now? _Every time they were together, she would be looking at him with hopeful eyes and kissable lips. What had he gotten himself into?

He sat down in his spot, handing her the yellow mug.

"Did you enjoy the movie?" he asked, trying to fill the awkward silence between them.

"Very much," Amy said, her eyes sparkling, "I had a really enjoyable evening."

Sheldon nodded and took a careful sip of his tea. It was still too hot. Amy had put her mug down on the coffee table in front of her. He put his mug next to hers.

"Good," he said quietly as he sat back. He had had an enjoyable evening too. He hadn't seen the entire movie, but he had enjoyed it as well. The music, the scenery. Paris had looked like a fairy tale. Of course Amy would have enjoyed it too.

"What about it did you enjoy most?"

"Ehm..." she stammered. "The - the kiss was nice."

Sheldon looked at her. He had been referring to the movie. _Hadn't he_? But Amy was blushing and it made Sheldon think that maybe she wasn't referring to a scene in the movie at all.

Their eyes met in a kind of stare-off.

"It was," Sheldon mumbled softly. His eyes were moving over her face. He was wondering what she was thinking. Was she waiting for him to make a move? His mind was going a mile a minute.

He was almost out of hypotheses to test.

_1\. __Amy tried to give him the chance to come clean himself – **she appeared doing that right now**_

_2\. __Amy had been disgusted by his blatant lies and decided to re-boot their relationship - **disproved**_

_3\. __Amy understood that his rivalry with Kripke was so serious that all was fair - **confirmed**_

_4\. __Amy had liked the way he had acted and was afraid confronting him would push him away – **somewhat confirmed **_

_5\. __All of the above - **disproved**_

_6\. __Amy would only kiss him if Kripke were present - **disproved**_

_7\. __He would be willing to do anything to come up with a reason to kiss Amy, besides admitting the glaringly obvious desire to – **it looked like he was testing this himself right now as well. **_

Amy was giving him a chance to come clean. Again. She was calling him out now. She had stated it outright; they had kissed. She had called it nice. That was positive, right? At least now he didn't need to worry about his skills in this matter.

She hadn't asked why he had kissed her. While he could claim the first two times were under the guise of getting Kripke of his back (that would be an awkward conversation) there was no denying he had kissed her in the theatre because he had simply wanted to.

And, if he were honest with himself; he had wanted to kiss her the other two times as well. The whole ordeal with Kripke was just a really convenient excuse for him to act upon this attraction that he had been suppressing so long.

Amy looked nervous.

Sheldon looked away. It was time to come clean. He grabbed his mug from the coffee table and took a hesitant sip.

"I should tell you something," he muttered before he lost the nerve. He _had to_ disprove his latest hypothesis. Amy deserved to know the truth. She had been patient with him for years.

Amy took a stuttering breath.

"What is it?"

Sheldon took another sip of his tea. He was desperately thinking of a way to come clean without looking like a pervert, a liar or a lying pervert.

He couldn't think of anything.

She would most definitely end things with him if she found out what kind of assumptions Kripke had made in regards to their relationship – and he had done absolutely nothing to deny them, but only encouraged his delusions.

Amy may have liked the kisses and the closeness between them… but there was no way she would appreciate the whole story behind it. Sheldon took another sip of his tea. He was a fool. He could have had her years ago, or even now. But he had screwed up. Royally.

Putting his mug back on the table, he turned to her. _This was it._ Time to confess.

Or maybe he could just kiss her one more time? Since it wouldn't happen again after this. It wasn't a classy move at all, but she wasn't going to like him after he confessed anyway. He could be selfish – he hardly ever was, after all – and get one last kiss from her.

"Sheldon?" Amy asked.

He reached out his hand to cradle her face. Amy inhaled softly. He looked in her eyes. He was going to miss this; her green eyes, beckoning him, tempting him. Closing the distance between them, he softly kissed her lips.

Amy made that whimpering sound again. And the tingles moved from their joined lips all through his body. Sheldon relaxed his jaw, moving his lips over hers more urgently. Their mouths opened and her tongue brushed against his, slowly and sensual.

Without breaking the contact between their lips, Amy moved closer to him. She pushed against his shoulders and practically crawled in his lap. Sheldon was breathing deeply through his nose, trying to keep up with Amy's assault on his mouth. Their bathing suit areas were mushed together again, just like that time in office. The similarity wasn't lost on Sheldon.

His blood was rushing through his veins, every move of Amy's lips against his caused a thrill to go through him. Her hair was so soft between his fingers, it felt like silk against the palm of his hand. His other hand was gripping Amy's behind and he pulled back from her face in shock when he realised just how he was groping her.

"Amy," he breathed.

"Hm?" she hummed, kissing his mouth again. Sheldon responded automatically.

_Good Lord, he had no control over his body anymore. _

"Amy," he repeated, pulling back again. "I have to tell you – you have to know, I –"

He had trouble forming coherent sentences with Amy softly grinding against him, the pupils of her green eyes blown wide, her chest rising and falling rapidly.

"Yes?" she mumbled, her mouth moving against his again.

_He was going to miss this. Her supple lips and the sweet scent of her skin so close to him. _

"Amy, please," he said, pulling back fully now and looking at her imploringly. "I lied."

She raised her eyebrows at him. Sheldon blushed under her gaze.

"I lied to Kripke," he spoke quietly and quickly, that way it would be over as fast as possible.

"He-he assumed my work was suffering because I was distracted," he mumbled. "Distracted by you, and the _laid _I was getting. I didn't correct him."

Amy's eyes were big.

"In fact, I only confirmed his assumptions," he looked away from her big eyes, full of shame. "That's why I had you sitting in my lap when he came by, and the kisses and the comments and - -"

"Sheldon," Amy interrupted him.

"And I promised you I would explain later, but you never asked and I didn't explain," he continued. He took a deep breath, preparing himself to continue and confess for real now.

"I never asked because you didn't need to explain," Amy whispered.

Sheldon looked up at her, his eyes large and questioning. "What?"

Amy squirmed in his lap, looking away from his eyes.

"I already knew why you'd done it," she muttered. "I called Penny after that first afternoon, and she told me about what happened between you and Kripke."

_Amy had known this whole time and she hadn't said anything. _

Sheldon stared at her. Of course Penny would have blabbed. He should have known. In fact; wasn't that the reason he had confided in her in the first place? So she would tell Amy, and he didn't have to?

"And I-I didn't say anything, because I was selfish," Amy whispered, "I _liked _it, the physical attention. You know I've been wanting that for years. I wasn't going to ruin the chance of you kissing me again by telling you I knew exactly what you were trying to do."

Sheldon couldn't believe his ears. She wanted him to kiss her.

"Right," he said.

"But then – in the theatre, you kissed me and Kripke wasn't there," Amy concluded. "I hoped maybe you kissed me this time because you liked it."

She was looking at him insecurely. Sheldon felt a rush of warmth through him. She wasn't going to end it then. He was almost sure.

"I kissed you because I wanted to," he confessed quietly.

Amy trembled in his lap. She smiled at him hesitantly. "Did you?" she asked.

Sheldon nodded.

"Yes," he confirmed. Amy smiled radiantly and leaned towards him, as if to kiss him again. Sheldon pushed her back, he was so confused. Overwhelmed. By his thoughts, by his feelings and the desire to have her lips on his again.

"Amy," he said. "What does this mean? For us? There is nothing in the Relationship Agreement about kissing, I don't know what you'll expect from me or what this all means for us as a couple."

She shrugged.

"I don't know either," she said simply. "But let's focus on what we _do _know, shall we? You kissed me because you wanted to. And I want to kiss you now, because I am overjoyed that you wanted to kiss me."

Sheldon nodded in agreement.

"So, I propose we just stop thinking about what we're doing and just _do_ what we've both been thinking about instead," she finished, sounding slightly breathless.

Sheldon couldn't argue with her flawless logic. He _was_ thinking too much.

So this time, when Amy leaned in again, he didn't push her back. Their lips met, and the electric currents pulsed through him again.

Sheldon closed of his mind, and just focussed on kissing her instead. Her sweet tasting lips, her tongue stroking the underside of his, the tingles it caused in his bathing suit area as she moved against him, her tiny exhales when he grasped her behind again.

He groaned in satisfaction against her opened mouth and vowed to himself to stop hypothesising.

Because why would he spend his time thinking of hypotheses to confirm or disprove, when that time was so much better spend kissing his girlfriend instead?

THE END

**A/N Took me a while to finish this. Thank you for sticking with me. If you enjoyed early-Shamy with clueless Sheldon and hungry-for-physical-affection Amy, or just the story as a whole; please let me know in a review. **

**Thank you in advance. **


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